Merritt McKeon is considered to be one of California’s preeminent experts in complex international and interstate family law litigation, mediation, and appeals, and has received numerous awards over 25 years of experience as an expert in international Hague Treaty petitions, child abduction, domestic violence, and both domestic and civil business mediation. Ms. McKeon has appeared on numerous television broadcasts such as Burden of Proof, Larry King Live, Good Morning America, The 700 Club, C-NBC, and various international media outlets in both Australia and Italy. In 1999, Ms. McKeon participated on a legal team with attorney Gloria Allred which resulted in the successful release of an American-born child whose mother had been murdered in Italy. Ms. McKeon appeared in the book Fight Back And Win: My Thirty-Year Fight Against Injustice and How You Can Win Your Own Battles by Gloria Allred, which highlights Ms. McKeon’s participation in the successful appeal written in Italy for the Italian Court. Ms. McKeon is co-author of Stop Domestic Violence: An Action Planning Guide to Saving Lives and appeared with the father of Nicole Brown Simpson on Larry King Live shortly after the O.J. Simpson murder trial. Merritt is considered a preeminent attorney in her subject areas and a ‘lawyer’s -lawyer’ who enjoys participating as both case consultant and co-counsel, focusing on tactical solutions to complex legal issues which often result in successful mediation through alternative dispute resolution (ADR). In 2014 Merritt attended the renowned Pepperdine, Strauss Mediation program and maintains an active practice assisting both clients and attorneys.

Michelle Buxton Hemesath’s practice is focused on representing injured victims and their families. She formed Ikuta Hemesath, LLP in April of 2022 with law partner, Ben Ikuta. She began her career representing healthcare providers and learned from some of the best defense attorneys on the West Coast. During this time, Michelle. gained invaluable experience and intimate knowledge of how insurance companies handle lawsuits, how to best position a case for trial, and how to wade through complex medical issues. Michelle treats every case as if its going to trial. Michelle stoutly believes that the only way to obtain maximum recovery in a settlement is for the defense firm and insurance carrier to know that she is willing and able to try cases. Michelle was raised in Torrance, California. She attended college at San Diego State University. After receiving her Bachelor of Arts in political science, Michelle attended the University of San Diego School of Law. While at there, she participated in the university’s special education clinic advocating on behalf of students and parents to ensure students received the maximum benefits allowable under the law. Michelle graduated in the top twenty percent of her class and received awards in Complex Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution. In addition, Michelle received the Maria Shih Award for Diversity Awareness and Service. Michelle is licensed to practice in the State of California, United States District Court for the Central District of California and United States District Court for the Southern District of California. She is immediate past the President of the Women Lawyers of Long Beach (WLLB) and current Treasurer, as well as a member of the Orange County Bar Association (OCBA), Orange County Trial Lawyers Association (OCTLA), Orange County Asian American Bar Association (OCAABA), and Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles (CAALA). Since 2019, Mrs. Hemesath has served as an attorney coach for the mock trial team at Valley High School. In 2021 and 2022, Michelle was selected as a Rising Star in plaintiff-side medical malpractice, awarded to the top 2.5% of attorneys under the age of 40, by Super Lawyer Magazine.

Since November of 2008, Heather Baker Dobbs has been a licensed and practicing attorney. For 16 years before joining Ikuta Hemesath LLP, she worked at a prestigious Los Angeles Plaintiffs’ firm handling every aspect of personal injury and employment matters from inception through trial. She now focuses on cases involving medical malpractice, elder abuse and personal injury. Through her years of litigation and hard fought wins in both trial and mediation, she has found that her true passion is in representing clients who have been wrongfully injured and obtaining large favorable results on their behalf. Heather enjoys forging a trusting working relationship with her clients and helping them through their time of injury or loss of a family member. Heather is well-versed in the ins and outs of every part of handling a case from inception to resolution. On a weekly basis she deals with the day to day of preparing complaints, discovery, depositions, hiring and conferring with experts, client contact, medical record analysis, drafting motions and briefs, attending hearings, mediation and trial. Heather is committed to the zealous representation of her clients in each of her cases, along with offering a personal side of transparent communication and compassion to clients along their litigation journey. When outside of the office, Heather enjoys spending time with her husband, two young kids, and dog, being active outdoors including hiking and going to the beach, and eating her favorite food: chips and salsa. Heather graduated magna cum laude from USC in 2005, with a double major in political science and psychology and a minor in business. Heather received her Juris Doctorate from Pepperdine University in May of 2008. During the fall of 2006, Heather clerked for the Honorable Kathleen Thompson, judge of the United States Bankruptcy Court of the Central District of California. Also, while at Pepperdine University, Heather obtained her Certificate in Alternative Dispute Resolution in 2008 from the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution. Heather has been selected as a Southern California Super Lawyers Rising Star (reserved for top 2.5% of attorneys under the age of 40) from 2012-2022.

Vanessa Raven is an experienced trial attorney who works out of the Northern California office. She is licensed in both California and Nevada. Vanessa’s practice focuses on representing injured victims in medical malpractice, personal injury, and elder abuse actions. Vanessa was formerly a partner at a prominent Sacramento medical malpractice defense firm. She spent nearly a decade representing physicians and hospitals in medical malpractice, elder abuse, and medical board licensing actions, giving her insight into how insurance companies think and how health care providers defend cases. She was named a rising star by Super Lawyers in medical malpractice in 2021 and 2022. Vanessa is a board member and current executive committee member of Women Lawyers of Sacramento (WLS). She is also a member of California Women Lawyers (CWL), the Sacramento County Bar Association (SCBA), Consumer Attorneys of California (CAOC), and Capital City Trial Lawyers (CCTLA). She was raised in Sacramento, California and attended California State University, Sacramento, where she received a B.A. in English literature. She then attended the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, where she competed coast to coast on the nationally recognized mock trial team. In her spare time, she enjoys reading and writing, yoga, baking, and spending time with her family.